Pivotally mounted plug and vaporizer



Patented Sept. 16, 1952 PIVOTALLY MOUNTED PLUG AND VAPORIZER William H. Wellens, Chicago, Ill.

Application April 12, 1946, Serial No. 661,848

6 Claims.

1 N This invention relates to electrical devices in general and more particularly to electrically heated vaporizers of the type shown 'in my.

application, Serial No. 610,913, filed August 17, 1945, now abandoned, of which this application is a continuation in part.

In the aforementioned application, the vaporizer is provided with a pair of contact prongs adapted to be received in a wall socket for completing the electrical connections and for supporting the vaporizer. The contact prong, receiving openings of the wall socket are sometimes vertically arranged and sometimes horizontally arranged and accordingly the vaporizer of the aforementioned application may be used only in sockets having the socket openings horizontally arranged if the vaporizer is to be maintained vertical.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a vaporizer or other electrical device with means whereby it may be vertically mounted in a wall socket having plug contact prongopenings either horizontally or vertically arranged. This may be accomplished by providing the electrical device with a pivotally mounted plug member carrying the contact prongs.

A further object of this invention is to provide improved means for establishing electrical connections between the device and the pivotally mounted plug member and for operating as a shut-ofi switch when the device is tilted from the vertical position.

Further objects of this invention reside in the details of construction of the improved vaporizer.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reference to the accompanying specification, claims and drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a rear perspective view of the vaporizer;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view therethrough. taken substantially along the line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 4l of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a rear elevational view with a portion of the cover removed.

The vaporizer is generally designated at I and includes a base member II, a plug member I2, and a cover member I3, all preferably made of plastic or other suitable insulating material. The base member II carries a heating element I4 below a tray I carrying vaporizable tablets I6 made of paradichlorobenzine, oil of cedar, or

2 the like. The electric heating element I4 heats the vaporizable tablets I6 to drive off vapors into the surrounding atmosphere.

The base member I I is substantially box-like in configuration and includes side walls I8 and a bottom wall I9. The rear side wall I8 is provided with a cavity 20 for receiving the plug member I2, and the side wall adjacent the cavity 26 is provided with a hole 2I for the purpose of pivotally mounting the plug member I2. Also mounted in the side wall I8 adjacent the cavity 20 are electrical contacts 22, 23, 24 and 25 which are spaced circumierentially about the opening 2|. The contacts 22 and 25 are secured to a contact strip 26 and the contacts 23 and 24 are secured to a contact strip 21. The contacts 22, 23, 24 and 25 are preferably in the form of rivets so that they and the strips are held in place on the side wall I8 of the base member II. The contact strips 26 and 21 extend into slots 28 and 29 formed between projections in the base member II.

The heating element I4 may include a ceramic form 3| carrying the heating element 32 and may also be provided with a pair of extensions 33 and 34' for providing electrical connections' to the heating element and for physically supporting the same. The extensions 33 and 34 extend downwardly into the slots 28 and 29 and engage the contact strips 25 and 21. Screws 35 and 36, screw threaded through the side wall I8 of the base member, operate to clamp the ex.-

base member and is also provided with openings 40 to permit the vapors to escape from the vaporizable tablets I6 into the surrounding atmosphere. In order to center the cover I3 on, the base member II, the upper portion-of the cover is provided with protrusions 4| engaging the upper portion of the base member I I and likewise In this waythe cover is accurately centered on the base member. The cover is also provided with a slotted opening 43 for the purpose of accommodating the plug member l2.

The plug member l2 carries a pair of contact prongs 44 and 45 which are adapted to be inserted in suitable openings in a wall socket. The contact prongs 44 and 45 extend through the plug member l2 and engage the contacts 22, 23, 24 and 25 carried by the base member. The plug member [2 is also provided with a stud '46 which extends through the opening 2| in the base member and a spring 41 interposed between a cotter pin 48 and the wall l8 urges the plug member l2 to the left as shown in Fig. 2. The

spring 47, therefore, operates to insure good ally hold the plug member 12 in rotativ pc'si tion with respect to the base member H I -With the parts in the position shown fin-the drawing, the contact prongs 54 aseline hori zontally arranged to fit into a wall'sccket hav ing horizontally arranged contact prong receiving openings. The contactprcng 44 engages the contact 25, and the contact-prong 45 engages the contact '23, whereby a circuit through the heating element is completed; from the contact prong '44 through contact25, contact strip 26, extension 33,'heating element 32-, xtensicn :34, contact strip 2'! and contact 23 to contact -e 7 7,

If new the vapor zer is to be utilized with a Wall socket having the contact prong receiving openings vertically arranged rather than hori zontally arranged, then all that is necessary "is to rotate the plug member l2 through substantially 90. When thi'si's done; the vaporizer is vertically mounted in'the wall socket 'even'tho'u'gh the socket openings are vertically arranged; The v electrical 'connecti onsto the heater element are then completed through the contacts 22 and 24 rather than through the contacts 23 and 25, as abcve, Universal application of the eta izer to wall sockets having either vertically er horizontallyarrangedopenlngfs is, therefore, provided. I F

To shut on the vaporizer, the repeater be removed from the wall socket c'r itlmayl tilt''din either direction through substantially i 45 and when the latter is-done the'contact prongs" 44 and A5 "become disengaged from the contacts 2243, 24 and 25, as illustrated in dtted ine n Fig. 5. The circuit conne tio s to the electrical heating element M are, therefore, disconnected and the vaporizer turnedpfi. Q d o l ic the V Q i WR in ,r ai cn, allthat is nec'fessary then is to rotate it back toits verticalpositidn. y V

-While for purposes of illustration,one iorm of this invention has been-disclosed, other. forms e e: yhe a r nt to ,t o ei ne in the art upon reference to this disclosure and;

e this nt me t i a i iitdybeli b'y the scl "of the appended claims an prior e prongs 'carriedby the plug member on opposite r p pb seimmbe page eet 4 sides of the stud to :be received and supported in the plug contact prong receiving openings,and electrical contacts circumferentially spaced from th stud carried by the base member in electrical engagement with the contact prongs when the contact prongs are vertically or horizontally positioned, and sprin means acting between said stud and plug member for insuring-good electrical contact between said contacts and said contact prongs and for frictionally maintaining the relative rotative positions of the plug and base membets.

2.;An electrical vaporizing device to be mounted vertically in a wall socket having a pair of vertically or horizontally arranged plug contact prong receiving openings comprising a base member of "insulating material, a plug member of insulating material, atray on said base for holding vaporizable material, a heating element below the t the 1 mi, stud tofb'e received and suppor contact p n dreamyptnhetii gjane (Sr-trig contacts withfo'ne'cf the'second two c'cnt trical contacts being electrically V connected with said heating element,

A l s sr ri lnv prizins sieri to be iiibiifiid mp in a wa k p k thav ns a pair of te n ti'il agiiiwizqlifi l yi rrane d, mug Contact prong recelvmg ns sompr si abasetmeme e! o ns n ,m rie ratreyaqia en h upper end'cf said member for holding-vapor iza ble material, 1 a; 1 heating element below said tray, a plug member of 'm I M I '4 l stud for pivotallymounting the plug member on smut-an axis; n: the tray, apair of 6 plane of:

a -i tpr figs ar jiipii l zpl m mb r: 1 7 1 5 IQ be qree i ed ahdi act H prong receiving n neei anife ll -i trlcally connecting the other contacts, said te ma ties m net a ,5, H ,r-arranged"contacts"- and a pair of horizontally arranged contacts eafi' ried by the base member and connected with said heater, the contacts being circuinferentially spaced from the stud, the vertically arranged contacts being in electrical engagement With the contact prongs when vertically positioned and the horizontally arranged contacts being in electrical engagement with the contact prongs when horizontally positioned, and means for electrically connecting one of the Vertically arranged contacts with one of the horizontally arranged contacts and for electrically connecting the other vertically arranged contact with the other horizontally arranged contact.

5. An electrical device to be mounted vertically in a Wall socket having a pair of vertically or horizontally arranged plu contact pron receiving openings comprising a base member of insulating material having a hole therein, a plu member of insulating material having a stud extending into the hole for pivotally mounting the plug member on the base member, a pair of contact prongs carried by the plug member on opposite sides of the stud to be received and supported in the plug contact prong receiving openings, electrical contacts circumferentially spaced from the stud carried by the base member in electrical engagement with the contact prongs when the contact prongs are vertically or horizontally positioned, and a spring between the stud and the base member for insuring good electrical engagement between the contacts and contact prongs and for frictionally maintaining the relative rotative positions of the base member and plu mber- 6. An electrical device includin a base mem= ber of insulating material, a tray for supporting vaporizable tablets, a pair of electrical contact strips carried by the base member, a heater element provided with a pair of extensions for supporting the heater element under the tray and for electrically connecting the heater element to the contact strips, a pair of screws carried by the base member for forcibly engaging the xtensions with the contact strips, a pair of contacts electrically connected to each strip, a plug member of insulating material pivotally mounted on the base member, and a pair of contact prongs carried by the plug member and adapted to be received in a Wall-socket, one of the contact prongs engaging one of the contacts of one contact strip and the other contact prong engaging one of the contacts of the other contact strip.

WILLIAM H. WELLENS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,044,270 Shaler Nov. 12, 1912 1,534,624 Weidlich Apr. 21, 1925 1,630,940 Hoffman May 31, 1927 1,669,666 Laub May 15, 1928 1,719,942 Muldoon July 9, 1929 1,760,138 Hunt May 27, 1930 1,891,538 Briscoe Apr. 21, 1931 1,824,055 Newton Sept. 22, 1931 1,845,432 McRaie et al Feb. 16, 1932 2,057,353 Whittemore Oct. 13, 1936 2,149,049 Gough Feb. 28, 1939 2,166,790 Benander July 18, 1939 2,293,015 Cohen Aug. 11, 1942 2,513,919 Costello July 4, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 342,858 Great Britain Feb. 12, 1931 

